Intel 13th Gen Core i9, i7, i5 Desktop CPU launched.

On Innovation day 2022, Intel released its 13th Gen “Raptor Lake” desktop processors. As usual, only K and KF variants of Intel 13th Gen Core i9, i7, and i5 Desktop CPUs will be first available. And a 6 GHz+ CPU, probably Core i9-13900KS, is scheduled for next year. The CPUs will start available from October 20.

The Intel 13th Gen processor family is the second generation of hybrid architecture built on the Intel 7 process node. New Generation offers more turbo clock speed, larger L2+L3 cache and doubles the E-cores to desktop Core i9, i7, and i5 CPUs.

For instance, the Core i9-13900K has a 600 MHz higher boost clock speed than the previous 12th generation Core i9 model, while the i7-13700K got 400 MHz and the i5-13600K got 200 MHz higher clocks. Intel says that the Core i9-13900K gives 24% better gaming performance, 15% and 41% improved single and multi-thread numbers. Similarly, up to 35% better performance in content creation workloads. 

All Intel 13th Gen Core i9,i7, and i5 desktop CPUs “K/KF” variants are unlocked means they are overclockable and support up to DDR5 5600 MT/s / DDR4 3200 MT/s memory. Unfortunately, AMD’s Zen 4 Ryzen 7000 CPU lacks DDR4 memory support. Currently, DDR4 support gives the benefit of saving money if you don’t want to spend more on the DDR5 RAM module and motherboard.

Intel 13th Gen Core i9,i7,i5, Desktop CPU Specs & Prices

Core i9-13900K/KF has 24 Cores and 32 Threads ( 8P+16E) with 68 MB of L3+L2 cache. The Performance Core can turbo boost up to 5.8 GHz, while the Efficient Core go up to 4.3 GHz. This time the turbo boost power consumption has gone up, which is 253 W, while the base power is 125 W. The Core i9-13900K supports Intel UHD Graphics 770, and the “KF” variant lack iGPU. Priced at $589 for K and $564 for KF 

Core i7-13700K/KF is 16 Cores and 24 Threads ( 8P+8E) CPU with 54 MB of L3+L2 cache. Its turbo boost can go up to 5.1 GHz on performance cores and up to 3.9 GHz on efficient cores. Moreover, the i5-13600K utilizes 125 W at the base clock and 181 W when hitting turbo boost clocks. The Core i7-13700K supports Intel UHD Graphics 770, and the “KF” variant lack iGPU. Priced at $409 for K and $384 for KF

Core i5-13600K/KF contains 14 Cores and 20 Threads ( 6P+8E) with 44 MB of L3+L2 cache. The Performance Core can turbo boost up to 5.1 GHz, while the Efficient Core go up to 3.9 GHz. The turbo and base power consumption are 181 W and 125W, respectively. The Core i5-13600K supports Intel UHD Graphics 770, and the “KF” variant lack iGPU. Priced at $319 for K and $294 for KF

Benchmarks are Not Exciting

In the presentation, Intel hesitated to title its flagship Core i9-13900K the “world’s fastest gaming chip”. Instead, Intel said that it is the chip that delivers the “World’s Best Gaming Experience”. On the other hand, Intel added gaming FPS frame times (less than the 99th percentile) chart to reflect how well the new CPUs deliver consistent frames per second. 

Intel targeted Ryzen 9 5950X for comparison in its all-in-house benchmark result. However, the company evaluated the Ryzen 7 5800X3D with 13900K in gaming performance, as it is the “Best Gaming Chip”. 

The 5800X3D mostly scored better and equal numbers despite being an older-generation CPU. Now we understand the reason why Intel showed the Ryzen 5800X3D in a small “Red Dash Line” on the benchmark chart. 

Also, in the company’s gaming benchmark chart comparison, Intel 13th Gen Core i9-13900K shows no considerable performance gains over the older 12th Gen Core i9-12900K. Notably, Horizon Zero Dawn and Metro Exodus games showed negative FPS. 

It’s TRUE that the best CPU war is forcing the companies to ignore power efficiency. To be honest, companies don’t really care about how much power the CPU is drawing as long as it’s delivering good enough performance. In addition, Intel claims that the 13th generation is also power-efficient. The presentation chart shows the Core i9-13900K at 65W delivers the same performance as the i9-12900K at 241W. 

In Short

The CPU competition between Intel and AMD has heated up. The companies are stretching the frequency to a whole new level. With intel 13th Gen we will touch the 6+ GHz barrier. Similarly, AMD significantly increased the frequency in Ryzen 7000 CPUs, which Intel forgot to add to its benchmark chart. In reality, the real competitor of Intel’s 13th Gen desktop CPU is the Zen 4 Ryzen 7000 CPUs, not Ryzen 5000.  

Just wait for the independent reviews of the intel 13th Gen core i9, i7, and i5 desktop CPU. Probably the reviews will be out before the availability date, which is October 20. Due to double E-cores, Intel 13th gen core i9, i7, and i5 could show some interesting results.